Hijra, Saudi Arabia’s Oscar pick from director Shahad Ameen, is a quiet, powerful, and deeply atmospheric drama about three generations of women crossing the desert toward Mecca. The film builds its world with patience, emotion, and cultural honesty, and it quickly becomes clear why it was chosen to represent the country this year.
Khairia Nazmi delivers the film’s strongest performance as the grandmother. She carries grief, memory and resilience in every look. Her calm dignity grounds the entire journey, and critics have already highlighted her as one of the standout performers in recent Saudi cinema. She embodies a past that refuses to disappear and a future she is trying to protect.
Nawaf Al Dhufairi’s role as the driver is one of the most affecting parts of the film. His story feels incomplete, yet painfully real. You sense a man crushed by circumstances he cannot escape. That emotional ambiguity is deliberate and reviewers have praised the film for refusing to tidy up his arc. His presence adds tension, sadness and humanity in equal measure.
Ameen is not afraid to confront difficult themes. The sponsor system, the mythology surrounding Zamzam water and the cultural sensitivity around women entering cemeteries all appear in the story. The film handles these topics with courage and confidence, never sensationalizing them. Many critics noted how Hijra blends tradition with unspoken pain, creating a portrait of Saudi womanhood that feels both specific and universal.
Visually, the film is striking. The desert landscapes are shot with a sense of isolation that mirrors the characters’ inner lives. Several reviewers pointed out the film’s impressive use of silence and long takes. Dialogue is minimal, but the emotional weight is constant. Ameen trusts the audience to feel rather than be told, and that trust pays off. The music in Hijra deserves a special praise too!
By the final act, the film becomes a meditation on disappearance, migration, memory and the ties that bind families even when they try to break. It is rare to see a film so confident in its stillness and so bold in its themes. Hijra is a meaningful step in the evolution of Saudi cinema and a worthy submission for the Academy Awards.